Liquid jetting apparatus

ABSTRACT

A liquid jetting apparatus includes a casing, a tank formed with a liquid storage chamber which stores liquid, an inlet which allows the liquid to be poured into the liquid storage chamber, and a liquid outflow channel which allows the liquid to flow out from the liquid storage chamber, a conveying mechanism which conveys a recording medium along a conveying path extending in a front-rear direction, a carriage which moves in a left-right direction, and a head mounted on the carriage and having a nozzle which jets the liquid onto the recording medium conveyed by the conveying mechanism. The tank, the conveying path, and the carriage are arranged inside the casing, the tank is arranged outside the conveying path in the left-right direction, and at least a part of the tank is arranged inside both ends of a movement area of the carriage in the left-right direction.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority from Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2014-079373 filed on Apr. 8, 2014, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present teaching relates to a liquid jetting apparatus which jetsliquid supplied from a tank which is refillable with the liquid.

2. Description of the Related Art

A printer (an example of a liquid jetting apparatus) including a largecapacity tank which is refillable with ink and a recording head whichrecords an image on a recording paper by jetting the ink supplied fromthe tank through nozzles has hitherto been known.

SUMMARY

In one exemplary arrangement of the conventional printer, a tank isarranged outside a paper conveying path and both ends of a movement areaof a carriage in a movement direction of the carriage. Moreover, noother member is arranged above the tank. In another exemplaryarrangement of the conventional printer, a tank is arranged inside apaper conveying path and both ends of a movement area of a carriage in amovement direction of the carriage.

In the one exemplary arrangement of the conventional printer, an accessto the tank is easy, but a dimension of an apparatus along the movementdirection of the carriage must be long. Moreover, since no other memberhas been arranged above the tank, a layout of members in the apparatusis inefficient. On the other hand, in the another exemplary arrangementof the conventional printer, a dimension of an apparatus along themovement direction of the carriage can be short, but the conveying pathand the tank must be arranged separately in an up-down direction, andtherefore, an outer size of an apparatus becomes high. Moreover, sinceanother member has been arranged above the tank, an access to an inletof the tank is not possible without drawing the tank frontward.

The present teaching has been made in view of the abovementionedcircumstances, and an object of the present teaching is to provide athin and downsized liquid jetting apparatus. Moreover, another object ofthe present teaching is to provide a liquid jetting apparatus in whichan access to a tank is easy.

According to an aspect of the present teaching, there is provided aliquid jetting apparatus including: a casing; a tank formed with aliquid storage chamber configured to store liquid, an inlet configuredto allow the liquid to be poured into the liquid storage chamber, and aliquid outflow channel configured to allow the liquid to flow out fromthe liquid storage chamber; a conveying mechanism configured to convey arecording medium along a conveying path extending in a front-reardirection; a carriage configured to move in a left-right direction, at aposition above the conveying path in an up-down direction and facing theconveying path; and a head mounted on the carriage and having a nozzleconfigured to jet the liquid flowed out from the liquid storage chamberthrough the liquid outflow channel onto the recording medium conveyed bythe conveying mechanism, wherein the tank, the conveying path, and thecarriage are arranged inside the casing, the tank is arranged outsidethe conveying path in the left-right direction, and at least a part ofthe tank is arranged inside both ends of a movement area of the carriagein the left-right direction.

According to the present teaching, a thin and downsized liquid jettingapparatus is realized by making an outer shape of the apparatus small inthe left-right direction and the up-down direction. Moreover, since itis possible to pour the liquid obliquely downward from outside of a sidewall of the casing to the inlet, an access to the tank at the time ofrefilling tank with the liquid is easy.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is an external perspective view of a multi-function peripheralshowing a cover in a closed state, and FIG. 1B is an externalperspective view of the multi-function peripheral showing the cover inan open state.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view schematically showing aninternal structure of a printer unit.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an arrangement of a carriage and an inktank.

FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the ink tank.

FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the ink tank.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view along a line VI-VI in FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a cross-section along a line VII-VII inFIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is right side view of the ink tank.

FIG. 9A is a cross-sectional view along a line IXA-IXA in FIG. 8, andFIG. 9B is a cross-sectional view along a line IXB-IXB in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10A is a plan view of the ink tank, and FIG. 10B is a perspectiveview of a cross-section along a line XB-XB in FIG. 10A.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view along a line XI-XI in FIG. 10A.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view along a line XII-XII in FIG. 11.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment of the present teaching will be described below. However,the embodiment described below is merely an example of the presentteaching, and it is needless to mention that it is possible to makeappropriate changes in the embodiment of the present teaching withoutdeparting from the scope of the teaching. Moreover, in the followingdescription, an up-down direction 7 is defined with reference to a statein which a multi-function peripheral 10 is usably installed (a state inFIGS. 1A and 1B, sometimes referred to as “usable state”) or withreference to a posture in which the multi-function peripheral 10 isusably installed (a posture in FIGS. 1A and 1B, sometimes referred to as“usable posture”). A front-rear direction 8 is defined with a side ofthe multi-function peripheral 10 formed with an opening 13 as a frontside (front surface), and a left-right direction 9 is defined by viewingthe multi-function peripheral 10 from the front side (front surface). Anupward direction is a component of the up-down direction 7 and adownward direction is a component of the up-down direction 7. The upwarddirection and the downward direction are mutually opposite directions.Similarly, each of a leftward direction and a rightward direction is acomponent of the left-right direction 9, and the leftward direction andthe rightward direction are mutually opposite directions. Each of afrontward direction and a rearward direction is a component of thefront-rear direction 8, and the frontward direction and the rearwarddirection are mutually opposite directions. In the present embodiment,the up-down direction 7 corresponds to a vertical direction, and thefront-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9 correspond to ahorizontal direction.

<Overall Arrangement of Multi-Function Peripheral 10>

A multi-function peripheral 10, as shown in FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, isformed to be substantially rectangular parallelepiped. Themulti-function peripheral 10 includes a printer unit 11 which records animage on a paper 12 (refer to FIG. 2) by an ink-jet recording method ata lower portion thereof. The printer unit 11, as shown in FIG. 2,includes a feeding section 15, a feeding tray 20, a discharge tray 21, aconveying roller section 54, a recording section 24, a discharge rollersection 55, a platen 42, and an ink tank 100 (an example of a tank).Moreover, the multi-function peripheral 10 includes a flatbed scanner atan upper portion thereof, and has various functions such as a scannerfunction, a facsimile function, and a copy function, in addition to aprint function. The multi-function peripheral 10 is an example of aliquid jetting apparatus or a liquid consuming apparatus. Moreover, theconveying roller section 54 and the discharge roller section 55 are anexample of a conveying mechanism.

A casing 14 which defines an external shape of the multi-functionperipheral 10 has a thin flat parallelepiped shape with a dimension inthe up-down direction 7 shorter as compared with a dimension in thefront-rear direction 8 and a dimension in the left-right direction 9. Astate, in which a bottom surface of the casing 14 is in contact with amounting surface such as a plate or a board, is a normal installed stateof the multi-function peripheral 10. A front wall 14A of the casing 14is provided with an opening 13, an operation panel 17, and a cover 70.

The opening 13 is formed at a center in the left-right direction 9 and alower side in the up-down direction 7 of the front wall 14A (an exampleof a side wall) of the casing 14. An internal space of the casing 14 isspread rearward in the front-rear direction 8 from the opening 13. Thefeeding tray 20 and the discharge tray 21 can be inserted into and drawnout from the internal space through the opening 13.

The operation panel 17 is provided above the opening 13 in the frontwall 14A of the casing 14. The operation panel 17 is provided with aninput button 17A (an example of an input section) and a liquid-crystaldisplay 17B (an example of a display section) on a front surfacethereof. The operation panel 17 is formed to be longer in the left-rightdirection 9, and a surface thereof is directed to be inclined upward.The operation panel 17 is arranged above the ink tank 100 that will bedescribed later.

The cover 70 is provided on a side (right side in FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B)of the opening 13 in the front wall 14A of the casing 14. The cover 70opens and closes an opening 22 that is formed in the front wall 14A ofthe casing 14. In a case of refilling the ink tank 100 with an ink, auser can access the ink tank 100 provided inside the casing 14, throughthe opening 22.

<Feeding Tray 20 and Discharge Tray 21>

The feeding tray 20 (an example of a paper feeding cassette), as shownin FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, can be inserted into and drawn out from themulti-function peripheral 10 by the user, in the front-rear direction 8through the opening 13 formed in the front wall 14A of the casing 14. InFIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, a state in which the feeding tray 20 is installedin the casing 14 is shown, and the feeding tray 20 is removed from thecasing 14 by being drawn out frontward in the front-rear direction 8.The feeding tray 20 is capable of supporting a plurality of papers 12that are stacked. The discharge tray 21 is arranged above the feedingtray 20, and is inserted into and drawn out from the casing 14 togetherwith the feeding tray 20. At an upper side of the discharge tray 21,there is an internal space which is extended rearward from the opening13. The discharge tray 21 supports the paper 12 discharged from a spacebetween the recording section 24 and the platen 42 by the dischargeroller section 55.

<Feeding Section 15>

The feeding section 15 feeds the paper 12 supported by the feeding tray20 to a conveying path 65. The feeding section 15, as shown in FIG. 2,includes a feeding roller 25, a feeding arm 26, and a shaft 27. Thefeeding roller 25 is rotatably supported by a front-end side of thefeeding arm 26. The feeding roller 25 rotates in a direction ofconveying the paper 12 in a conveying direction 16 by reverse rotationof a conveying motor (not shown in the diagram). In the followingdescription, rotation of the feeding roller 25, a conveying roller 60,and a discharge roller 62 in a direction of conveying the paper 12 inthe conveying direction 16 will be referred to as “normal rotation”. Thefeeding arm 26 is pivotally supported by the shaft 27 which is supportedby a frame of the printer unit 11. The feeding ram 26 is biased by anelastic force of a spring etc. or due to a weight of the feeding arm 26,such that the feeding arm 26 is pivoted toward the feeding tray 20.

<Conveying Path 65>

The conveying path 65 is formed inside the casing 14. As shown in FIG.2, a part of the conveying path 65 is a space formed by an outer guidemember 18 and an inner guide member 19 which face each other with apredetermined spacing distance intervening therebetween inside theprinter unit 11. The conveying path 65 is a path that is extended from arear end portion of the feeding tray 20 toward a rear side of theprinter unit 11. Moreover, the conveying path 65 is a path that makes aU-turn while being extended from a lower side to an upper side at therear side of the printer unit 11, and reaches the discharge tray 21 viathe space between the recording section 24 and the platen 42. Theconveying path 65 between the conveying roller section 54 and thedischarge roller section 55, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, is providedat a substantially central portion in the left-right direction 9 of themulti-function peripheral 10, and is extended in the front-reardirection 8. Although it is not shown in FIG. 3, the feeding tray 20 andthe discharge tray 21 are arranged at positions overlapping with an areaof the conveying path 65 along the left-right direction 9, when viewedfrom the up-down direction 7. The conveying direction 16 of the paper 12in the conveying path 65 is indicated by a dashed-dotted line in FIG. 2.

<Conveying Roller Section 54>

The conveying roller section 54, as shown in FIG. 2, is arranged at anupstream side of the recording section 24 in the conveying direction 16.The conveying roller section 54 includes the conveying roller 60 and apinch roller 61 which are facing mutually. The conveying roller 60 isdriven by a conveying motor. The pinch roller 61 rotates following therotation of the conveying roller 60. The paper 12 is conveyed in theconveying direction 16 while being pinched between the pinch roller 61and the conveying roller 60 which is rotating positively by normalrotation of the conveying motor.

<Discharge Roller Section 55>

The discharge roller section 55, as shown in FIG. 2, is arranged at adownstream side of the recording section 24 in the conveying direction16. The discharge roller section 55 includes the discharge roller 62 anda spur 63 which are facing mutually. The discharge roller 62 is drivenby the conveying motor. The spur 63 rotates following the rotation ofthe discharge roller 62. The paper 12 is conveyed in the conveyingdirection 16 while being pinched between the spur 63 and the dischargeroller 62 which is rotating positively by normal rotation of theconveying motor.

<Recording Section 24>

The recording section 24, as shown in FIG. 2, is arranged between theconveying roller section 54 and the discharge roller section 55 in theconveying direction 16. Moreover, the recording section 24 is arrangedto face the platen 42 in the up-down direction, sandwiching theconveying path therebetween. In other words, the recording section 24 isarranged above the conveying path 65 in the up-down direction 7, to facethe conveying path 65. The recording section 24 includes a carriage 23and a recording head 39.

The carriage 23, as shown in FIG. 3 is supported by guide rails 43 and44 extended in the left-right direction 9 respectively at positionsisolated in the front-rear direction 8. The guide rails 43 and 44 aresupported by the frame of the printer unit 11. The carriage 23 isconnected to a known belt mechanism that is provided for the guide rail44. The belt mechanism is driven by a carriage motor (not shown in thediagram). In other words, the carriage 23 connected to the beltmechanism reciprocates in the left-right direction 9 by driving of thecarriage motor. A movement range of the carriage 23, as shown byalternate long and short dash lines in FIG. 3, is extended to the leftand right of the conveying path 65 in the left-right direction 9.

Moreover, ink tubes 32 which connect the ink tank 100 and the recordinghead 39, and a flexible flat cable 33 which electrically connects therecording head 39 and a control substrate on which a control section(not shown in the diagram) is mounted, are extended from the carriage23. The ink tubes 32 supply inks stored in the ink tank 100 to therecording head 39. More elaborately, four ink tubes 32B, 32M, 32C, and32Y (collectively referred to as “ink tube 32”), through which the inksof four colors (black, magenta, cyan, and yellow colors) aredistributed, are extended from the ink tank 100, and are connected tothe carriage 23 in a bundled form. The flexible flat cable 33 transmitsa control signal outputted from the control section, to the recordinghead 39.

The recording head 39, as shown in FIG. 2, is installed on the carriage23. A plurality of nozzles 40 is formed in a lower surface of therecording head 39. Front ends of the plurality of nozzles 40 are exposedthrough the lower surface of the recording head 39 and the carriage 23on which the recording head 39 is installed. In the followingdescription, the surface through which the front ends of the nozzles 40are exposed will be referred to as a “nozzle surface”. The recordinghead 39 jets ink as fine ink droplets through the nozzles 40. In aprocess of the movement of the carriage 23, the recording head 39 jetsink droplets toward the paper 12 supported by the platen 42.Accordingly, an image is recorded on the paper 12.

<Platen 42>

The platen 42, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, is arranged between theconveying roller section 54 and the discharge roller section 55 in theconveying direction 16. The platen 42 is arranged to face the recordingsection 24 in the up-down direction 7, and supports the paper 12conveyed by the conveying roller section 54 from a lower side.

<Ink Tank 100>

The ink tank 100, as shown in FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, is accommodatedinside the casing 14. The ink tank 100 is fixed to the multi-functionperipheral 10 such that it cannot be removed easily from themulti-function peripheral 10.

A front surface of the ink tank 100 is exposed outside themulti-function peripheral 10 through an opening 22 that is formed in thefront wall 14A of the casing 14. The opening 22 is adjacent to theopening 13 in the left-right direction 9. Moreover, the casing 14 isprovided with a cover 70 which is pivotable between a covered positionof covering the opening 22 (refer to FIG. 1A), and an exposed positionof exposing the opening 22 (refer to FIG. 1B). The cover 70 is supportedby the casing 14 to be pivotable around a pivot axis 70A extended in theleft-right direction 9 at a lower end side in the up-down direction 7.The pivot axis 70A is provided at a position closer to a lower end 72than to an upper end 71 of the cover 70 when the opening 22 is closed bythe cover 70 (a state shown in FIG. 1A).

The ink tank 100, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, has a substantiallyrectangular parallelepiped shape. The ink tank 100 has a front wall 101,a right wall 102, a left wall 103, an upper wall 104, and a lower wall105. The front wall 101 includes an erected wall 101A which is extendedsubstantially in the up-down direction 7 from the lower wall 105, and aninclined wall 101B which is connected to an upper end of the erectedwall 101A and is inclined with respect to the up-down direction 7 andthe front-rear direction 8. Moreover, an upper surface of the lower wall105 which forms a bottom surface of an ink chamber 111 that will bedescribed later is inclined downward toward right side. On the otherhand, a rear surface of the ink tank 100 is open. Moreover, the rearsurface of the ink tank 100 is sealed by a film 106 being welded torear-end surfaces of the lower wall 105, the upper wall 104, the leftwall 103, and the right wall 102. In other words, the film 106 forms arear wall of the ink tank 100.

<Ink Chamber 111>

A plurality of partition walls 107, 108, and 109 which demarcate aninternal space is provided at an interior of the ink tank 100 as shownin FIG. 5. Each of the partition walls 107, 108, and 109 is extended inthe up-down direction 7 and the front-rear direction 8, and is connectedto the front wall 101, the upper wall 104, the lower wall 105, and thefilm 106. Moreover, the partition walls 107, 108, and 109 are providedto be apart from each other in the left-right direction 9. As a result,an internal space of the ink tank 100 is partitioned into four inkchambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and 111Y which are adjacent in the left-rightdirection 9. The ink chamber 111 is an example of a liquid storagechamber that stores ink to be jetted through the nozzles 40.

The ink chamber 111B is a space defined by the front wall 101, the rightwall 102, the upper wall 104, the lower wall 105, the film 106, and thepartition wall 107. The ink chamber 111M is a space defined by the frontwall 101, the upper wall 104, the lower wall 105, the film 106, and thepartition walls 107 and 108. The ink chamber 111C is a space defined bythe front wall 101, the upper wall 104, the lower wall 105, the film106, and the partition walls 108 and 109. The ink chamber 111Y is aspace defined by the front wall 101, the left wall 103, the upper wall104, the lower wall 105, the film 106, and the partition wall 109.

In the following description, the ink chambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and111C are collectively referred to as “ink chambers 111” sometimes.Moreover, reference numerals having different alphabets as a suffix (B,M, C, and Y) are assigned to components corresponding to the inkchambers 111, and are collectively referred to with the alphabetsomitted sometimes.

Inks of different colors are stored in the ink chambers 111respectively. Concretely, a black ink is stored in the ink chamber 111B,a cyan ink is stored in the ink chamber 111C, a magenta ink is stored inthe ink chamber 111M, and a yellow ink is stored in the ink chamber111Y. Each color ink is an example of a liquid. However, the number ofink chambers 111 and the colors of inks are not restricted to the numberand the colors in the abovementioned example. The ink chambers 111 arearranged along the left-right direction 9. Moreover, in the four inkchambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and 111Y, the ink chamber 111B is arranged atthe extreme right side and the ink chamber 111Y is arranged at theextreme left side. Furthermore, the ink chamber 111B has a volume largerthan a volume of each of another ink chambers 111M, 111C, and 111Y.

<Inlet 112>

The inclined wall 101B of the ink tank 100 is provided with inlets 112B,112M, 112C, and 112Y (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “inlets112”) through which the inks are poured into the ink chambers 111respectively. The inlets 112 are arranged in the left-right direction 9.Each of the inlets 112 runs through a thickness direction of theinclined wall 101B, and communicates one of the ink chambers 111 with anexterior of the ink tank 100. An inner surface of the inclined wall 101Bfaces the ink chamber 111, and an outer surface of the inclined wall101B faces the exterior of the ink tank 100. Consequently, the inlets112 communicate the ink chambers 111 with the exterior of the ink tank100 directly. In other words, between each of the inlets 112 and one ofthe ink chambers 111, there is no channel having a cross-sectional areasmaller than a cross-sectional area of the inlet 112, and which is bent.

The inclined wall 101B and the inlets 112 provided for the inclined wall101B, as shown in FIG. 1B, are exposed to an exterior of themulti-function peripheral 10 via the opening 22 by positioning the cover70 at an exposed position. In the present embodiment, a posture of theink tank 100 when the inks are poured into the ink chambers 111 throughthe inlets 112 (pouring posture) is a posture of the ink tank 100 whenthe multi-function peripheral 10 is in a usable posture. In other words,when the multi-function peripheral 10 is in the usable posture, the inksare poured into the ink chambers 111 through the inlets 112respectively.

The inlets 112 are formed in the inclined wall 101B of the ink tank 100and directed to be inclined upward toward an outer side of the casing14. In other words, a virtual plane including the inlets 112 is alongthe inclined wall 101B, and is inclined with respect to the up-downdirection 7 and the front-rear direction 8, and a direction orthogonalto the virtual plane and directed outward of the ink tank 100 from theinlet 112 is an upward inclined direction.

The ink tank 100 has caps 113B, 113M, 113C, and 113Y (hereinafter,collectively referred to as “caps 113”) that are detachable from theinlets 112 respectively. As shown in FIG. 1A, the caps 113 attached tothe inlets 112 block the inlets 112 by making close contacts withperipheries of the inlets 112 respectively. Whereas, as shown in FIG.1B, the caps 113 removed from the inlets 112 open the inlets 112. Thecaps 113 are attached to and detached from the inlets 112 respectivelyin a state that the cover 70 is positioned at the exposed position.Moreover, by detaching the caps 113 from the inlets 112, it is possibleto pour the inks into the ink chambers 111.

<Ink Outflow Channel 114>

Ink outflow channels 114B, 114M, 114C, and 114Y (hereinafter,collectively referred to as “ink outflow channels 114”) (an example of aliquid outflow channel) are connected to the ink chambers 111respectively as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 9A. Each of the ink outflowchannel 114 is a channel which allows the ink stored in thecorresponding ink chamber 111 to outflow to outside of the ink tank 100.Each of the ink outflow channel 114 in the present embodiment is achannel running from the corresponding ink chamber 111 up to a rightside surface of the ink tank 100 (in other words, an outer surface ofthe right wall 102).

The ink outflow channel 114Y communicates with the ink chamber 111Ythrough an opening 115Y (refer to FIG. 7) provided near a lower end ofthe partition wall 109 which defines a right surface of the ink chamber111Y. Moreover, the ink outflow channel 114Y reaches a right sidesurface of the ink tank 100 through an opening 116Y (refer to FIG. 8)provided in the right wall 102. More elaborately, the ink outflowchannel 114Y, as shown in FIG. 9A, is extended to right along theleft-right direction 9 from the opening 115Y on a front side of the inkchambers 111B, 111M, and 111C, and reaches the opening 116Y through theright wall 102 (in other words, reaches the right side surface of theink tank 100).

The ink outflow channel 114C communicates with the ink chamber 111Cthrough an opening 115C (refer to FIG. 7) provided near a lower end of apartition wall 108 which defines a right surface of the ink chamber 111C. Moreover, the ink outflow channel 114C reaches the right side surfaceof the ink tank 100 through an opening 116C (refer to FIG. 8) providedin the right wall 102. More elaborately, the ink outflow channel 114C,as shown in FIG. 9A, is extended to right along the left-right direction9 from the opening 115C on a front side of the ink chambers 111B and111M, and reaches the opening 116C through the right wall 102.

The ink outflow channel 114M communicates with the ink chamber 111Mthrough an opening 115M (refer to FIG. 7) provided near a lower end ofthe partition wall 107 which defines a right surface of the ink chamber111M. Moreover, the ink outflow channel 114M reaches the right sidesurface of the ink tank 100 through an opening 116M (refer to FIG. 8)provided in the right wall 102. More elaborately, the ink outflowchannel 114M, as shown in FIG. 9A, is extended to right along theleft-right direction 9 from the opening 115M on a front side of the inkchamber 111B, and reaches the opening 116M through the right wall 102.

The ink outflow channel 114B communicates with the ink chamber 111Bthrough an opening 115B (refer to FIG. 7) provided near a boundary ofthe right wall 102 and the lower wall 105 which define a right surfaceand a bottom surface of the ink chamber 111B respectively. A partitionwall 110 which intersects an inflow direction of the ink to the opening115B (in other words, a downward direction of the up-down direction 7)is provided above the opening 115B. Moreover, the ink outflow channel114B reaches the right side surface of the ink tank 100 through anopening 116B (refer to FIG. 8) provided in the right wall 102.

The ink outflow channel 114B, as shown in FIG. 6, is extended frontwardalong the front-rear direction 8 from the opening 115B, and reaches theopening 116B through the right wall 102 on a front side of the inkoutflow channels 114M, 114C, and 114Y. Moreover, the ink outflow channel114B extended in the front-rear direction 8 intersects the ink outflowchannels 114M, 114C, and 114Y each extended in the left-right direction9. More elaborately, the ink outflow channel 114B is extended frontwardbelow the ink outflow channels 114M, 114C, and 114Y extended in theleft-right direction 9.

In other words, the openings 115B, 115M, 115C, and 115Y which connectthe corresponding ink chambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and 111Y to the inkoutflow channels 114B, 114M, 114C, and 114Y respectively, as shown inFIG. 7, are provided at positions, which are located on a lower side ofcenters of the ink chambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and 111Y in the up-downdirection 7 respectively, on a front side of centers of the ink chambers111B, 111M, 111C, and 111Y in the front-rear direction 8 respectively,and on a right side of centers of the ink chambers 111B, 111M, 111C, and111Y in the left-right direction 9 respectively. Moreover, the openings116B, 116M, 116C, and 116Y, as shown in FIG. 8, are provided on theright side surface of the ink tank 100 at positions, which are locatedon a lower side of a center in the up-down direction 7 and on a frontside of a center in the front-rear direction 8 of the ink tank 100. Moreelaborately, the openings 116 are provided to be adjacent in thefront-rear direction 8 in order of the openings 116B, 116Y, 116C, and116M from a front side to a rear side of the right side surface of theink tank 100.

For each of the ink chambers 111, a center in the up-down direction 7means a center of the maximum dimension along the up-down direction 7(in the present embodiment, the maximum dimension along the up-downdirection 7 between the upper wall 104 and the lower wall 105). A centerin the front-rear direction 8 means a center of the maximum dimensionalong the front-rear direction 8 (in the present embodiment, the maximumdimension along the front-rear direction 8 between the front wall 101and the film 106). A center in the left-right direction 9 means a centerof the maximum dimension along the left-right direction 9 (in thepresent embodiment, the maximum dimension along the left-right direction9 between the mutually adjacent partition walls 107, 108, and 109,between the right wall 102 and the partition wall 107, or between theleft wall 103 and the partition wall 109). Similarly, the center of theink tank 100 in the up-down direction 7 means a center of the maximumdimension along the up-down direction 7 of the ink tank 100. The centerof the ink tank 100 in the front-rear direction 8 means a center of themaximum dimension along the front-rear direction 8 of the ink tank 100.

Moreover, volumes of ink outflow channels 114 from the openings 115 upto the openings 116 are different from each other. In the presentembodiment, a volume of the ink outflow channel 114Y between the opening115Y and the opening 116Y is the largest. A volume of the ink outflowchannel 114C between the opening 115C and the opening 116C is the secondlargest. A volume of the ink outflow channel 114M between the opening115M and the opening 116M is the third largest. A volume of the inkoutflow channel 114B between the opening 115B and the opening 116B isthe smallest. There are various causes that make the volumes of the inkoutflow channels 114 different. For instance, the difference in volumesis caused due to a length of each of the ink outflow channels 114 in theleft-right direction 9, or due to a cross-sectional area of each of theink outflow channels 114 that is orthogonal to the left-right direction9.

Furthermore, the maximum outflow amount of inks per unit time throughthe ink outflow channels 114 is set to be larger than the maximum amountof inks jetted per unit time through the nozzles 40 of the recordinghead 39. The maximum outflow amount, for instance, is determined by thecross-sectional areas of the ink outflow channels 114 orthogonal to theleft-right direction 9.

<Ink Deriving Channel 117 and Return Channel 119>

Ink deriving channels 117B, 117M, 117C, and 117Y (hereinafter,collectively referred to as “ink deriving channels 117”) (an example ofa liquid deriving channel) are provided in the right side surface of theink tank 100 as shown in FIG. 8. One end of each of the ink derivingchannels 117B, 117M, 117C, and 117Y is connected to one of thecorresponding ink outflow channels 114B, 114M, 114C, and 114Y at aposition of one of the corresponding openings 116B, 116M, 116C, and116Y, and the other end of each of the ink deriving channels 117B, 117M,117C, and 117Y is connected to one of corresponding connecting portions118B, 118M, 118C, and 118Y (hereinafter, collectively referred to as“connecting portions 118”). The four ink tubes 32B, 32M, 32C, and 32Y(refer to FIG. 3) (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “ink tubes32”) corresponding to inks of four colors are connected to theconnecting portions 118 which are provided to be projected from theupper wall 104 of the ink tank 100. In other words, each of the inkderiving channels 117 is a channel that guides the ink flowed out fromone of the corresponding ink chambers 111 through one of thecorresponding ink outflow channels 114 to the recording head 39 throughone of the ink tubes 32 connected to one of the corresponding connectingportions 118. A volume of each of the ink deriving channels 117 and avolume of each of the ink tubes 32 is substantially same.

Moreover, the right side surface of the ink tank 100, as shown in FIG. 8and FIG. 9B, is provided with return channels 119B, 119M, 119C, and 119Y(hereinafter, collectively referred to as “return channels 119”). Oneend of each of the return channels 119B, 119M, 119C, and 119Y isconnected to one of the corresponding ink outflow channels 114B, 114M,114C, and 114Y, at a position of one of the corresponding openings 116B,116M, 116C, and 116Y, and the other end of each of the return channels119B, 119M, 119C, and 119Y communicates with one of the correspondingink chambers 111 through one of corresponding openings 120B, 120M, 120C,and 120Y (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “openings 120”). Theopenings 116 and the openings 120 are provided at different positions inthe up-down direction 7. More elaborately, the openings 120 are providedat an upper side in the up-down direction 7 of the correspondingopenings 116.

Moreover, the openings 120 are provided at positions, which are locatedon an upper side of the centers of the corresponding ink chambers 111 inthe up-down direction 7 (excluding the opening 120B). More preferably,the openings 120 are provided at positions, which are located on anupper side of liquid levels of the inks inside the corresponding inkchambers 111 (excluding the opening 120B), a rear side (an example of athird direction) of the corresponding opening 116 in the front-reardirection 8 (excluding the opening 120B), and a left side (an example ofa fourth direction) of the corresponding opening 116 in the left-rightdirection 9. In other words, each of the return channels 119 is extendedupward in the up-down direction 7, and is extended rearward in thefront-rear direction 8 from one of the openings 116, and is furtherextended leftward in the left-right direction 9 to reach one of theopenings 120 (excluding the return channel 119B).

The right wall 102 of the ink tank 100, as shown in FIG. 8, is providedwith a plurality of projected walls 121A to 121I (the plurality ofprojected walls 121A to 121I will sometimes be collectively referred toas “projected walls 121”). Each of the projected walls 121 is projectedto right from an outer surface (right side surface) of the right wall102, and is extended along the outer surface of the right wall 102.Moreover, a film 122 is welded to a right-side front end of each of theprojected walls 121. The single (common) film 122 is welded to theprojected walls 121A to 121I. The ink deriving channels 117 and thereturn channels 119 are spaces defined by the film 122 and the adjacentprojected walls 121A to 121H.

The projected walls 121A and 121B which define the ink deriving channel117B are extended rearward from a position sandwiching the opening 116B,and are further extended upward to reach an upper end portion of the inktank 100. The projected walls 121C and 121D which define the inkderiving channel 117Y, the projected walls 121E and 121F which definethe ink deriving channel 117C, and the projected walls 121G and 121Hwhich define the ink deriving channel 117M are extended downward frompositions sandwiching the corresponding openings 116Y, 116C, and 116Mrespectively, and are further extended upward at a rear side of theopenings 116Y, 116C, and 116M to reach the upper end portion of the inktank 100. In other words, the ink deriving channels 117Y, 117C, and 117Mare connected to the corresponding ink outflow channels 114Y, 114C, and114M respectively, at lower portions (refers to a lower side of thecenter in the up-down direction 7) of the openings 116Y, 116C, and 116M.Furthermore, each of the ink deriving channels 117 is connected to oneof the corresponding connecting portions 118 through a space (omitted inthe diagram) extended in the up-down direction 7 and the left-rightdirection 9 inside the ink tank 100.

The projected walls 121A and 121B which define the return channel 119B,the projected walls 121B and 121C which define the return channel 119Y,the projected walls 121D and 121E which define the return channel 119C,and the projected walls 121F and 121G which define the return channel119M are extended upward from positions sandwiching the correspondingopenings 116. In other words, the return channels 119 are connected tothe corresponding ink outflow channels 114 at upper portions (refers toan upper side of the center in the up-down direction 7) of the openings116. Moreover, each of the return channels 119, as shown in FIG. 9B, isextended leftward in the left-right direction 9 inside the ink tank 100,and communicates with one of the corresponding ink chambers 111 throughone of the corresponding openings 120.

In the present embodiment, a channel resistance of each of the returnchannels 119Y, 119C, and 119M is set to be higher than a channelresistance of one of the corresponding ink outflow channels 114Y, 114C,and 114M. There are various methods for changing the channel resistance.For example, it is possible to increase the channel resistance byincreasing a length of the channel, by reducing a cross-sectional areaof the channel, or by combining the two.

<Additional Ink Chamber 123>

Furthermore, the right side surface of the ink tank 100, as shown inFIG. 8, is provided with an additional ink chamber 123 (an additionalstorage chamber). The additional ink chamber 123 is a space which isdefine by the film 122 and the projected walls 121H and 121I continuedin a peripheral direction. The additional ink chamber 123 communicateswith the ink chamber 111B via through holes 123A and 123B in the rightwall 102. The through hole 123B is provided at an upper side of thethrough hole 123A in the up-down direction 7. A detection portion 124 isformed on the additional ink chamber 123, by a part of the projectedwall 121I which defines a lower end of the additional ink chamber 123surrounding a front side, a rear side, and a lower side of the throughhole 123A.

<Optical Sensor 125>

The multi-function peripheral 10, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 8,includes an optical sensor 125 having a light emitting portion 125A anda light receiving portion 125B facing mutually in the front-reardirection 8, while sandwiching the detection portion 124 therebetween.The light emitting portion 125A outputs light that is transmittedthrough the projected wall 121I, but is not transmitted through theblack ink (such as visible light and infrared light) toward the lightreceiving portion 125B. The light receiving portion 125B outputs, to thecontrol section, a high-level signal (refers to a signal having a signallevel above a threshold value) in response to receiving the lightoutputted from the light emitting portion 125A. On the other hand, thelight receiving portion 125B outputs, to the control section, alow-level signal (refers to a signal having a signal level below thethreshold value) in response to not receiving the light.

<Atmosphere Communicating Channel 126>

Atmosphere communicating channels 126B, 126M, 126C, and 126Y(hereinafter, collectively referred to as “atmosphere communicatingchannels 126”) are connected to the ink chambers 111 respectively asshown in FIG. 10B. Each of the atmosphere communicating channels 126communicates one of the corresponding ink chambers 111 with theatmosphere. More elaborately, each of the atmosphere communicatingchannels 126 communicates with one of the corresponding ink chambers 111through one of corresponding notches 127, and communicates with anexterior of the ink tank 100 through one of corresponding openings 132.Moreover, each of the atmosphere communicating channels 126 makes an airflow in and out between one of the corresponding ink chambers 111 andthe exterior of the ink tank 100 through one of the correspondingnotches 127, one of corresponding first through holes 128, one ofcorresponding labyrinths 129, one of corresponding second through holes130, one of corresponding gas passages 131, and one of the correspondingopenings 132.

Each of the notches 127 is provided at a position, which is located onan upper side of the center in the up-down direction 7, a rear side ofthe center in the front-rear direction 8, and a left side of the centerin the left-right direction 9, of one of the corresponding ink chambers111. More elaborately, the notch 127B is defined by the upper wall 104,the film 106, and the partition wall 107. The notch 127M is defined bythe upper wall 104, the film 106, and the partition wall 108. The notch127C is defined by the upper wall 104, the film 106, and the partitionwall 109. The notch 127Y is defined by the upper wall 104, the film 106,and the left wall 103. In other words, each of the notches 127 in thepresent embodiment is provided at an upper end, a rear end, and a leftend of one of the corresponding ink chambers 111.

Moreover, a semipermeable membrane 133 is applied to the first throughholes 128. The semipermeable film 133 is a porous film having microholes, which blocks passing of inks and allows passing of gases, and ismade of a fluoro-resin such as, polytetrafluoroethylene,polychlorotrifluoroethylene, tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylenecopolymer, tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoro alkyl vinyl ether copolymer,and tetrafluoroethylene-ethylene copolymer. Furthermore, an upper sideof the first through holes 128, the labyrinths 129, and the secondthrough holes 130 is covered by a film 134.

<Partition Wall 135>

As shown in FIG. 7, FIG. 9A, and FIG. 9B, partition walls 135B, 135M,135C, and 135Y (hereinafter, collectively referred to as “partitionwalls 135”) each spread in the front-rear direction 8 and the left-rightdirection 9 are provided inside the ink chambers 111, respectively. Eachof the partition walls 135 in the present embodiment is extended in asubstantially horizontal direction. However, the partition walls 135 arenot restricted to be extended only in the horizontal direction. Forinstance, the partition walls 135 may be inclined to descend toward rearside in the front-rear direction 8.

The partition wall 135B is connected to the erected wall 101A, the rightwall 102, the film 106, and the partition wall 107. The partition wall135M is connected to the erected wall 101A, the film 106, and thepartition walls 107 and 108. The partition wall 135C is connected to theerected wall 101A, the film 106, and the partition walls 108 and 109.The partition wall 135Y is connected to the erected wall 101A, the leftwall 103, the film 106, and the partition wall 109. In other words, eachof the partition walls 135 is provided at a lower side of one of theinlets 112 inside one of the corresponding ink chambers 111. Moreover,each of the partition walls 135 divides a part of one of thecorresponding ink chambers 111 in the up-down direction 7. In otherwords, each of the partition walls 135 is away from the upper wall 104and the lower wall 105, and there are spaces on the upper side and thelower side in the up-down direction of each of the partition walls 135.Since the partition walls 135B, 135M, 135C, and 135M have substantiallythe same shape, the partition wall 135M will be described below indetail by referring to FIG. 11 and FIG. 12.

The partition wall 135M, as shown in FIG. 11, is provided at least for across area. As an example, the cross area can be defined as a regionthat intersects a virtual line (broken line in FIG. 11) passing throughthe inlet 112M and orthogonal to the inclined wall 101B. As anotherexample, the cross area can be defined as a region that intersects avirtual line passing through the inlet 112M and extended in a directionof passing through the inlet 112M. As still another example, the crossarea can be defined as a region intersecting an outflow direction of anink that is flowed out from a supply port 137 of an ink bottle 136 (anexample of a liquid supply container), that has been positioned uponentering into the ink chamber 111M through the inlet 112M. In otherwords, the partition wall 135M is provided in an area through which theink poured into the ink chamber 111M through the inlet 112M passes. Inother words, a majority of the ink poured into the ink chamber 111Mthrough the inlet 112M collides with the partition wall 135M.

The partition wall 135M, as shown in FIG. 12, is provided for an entirearea on a front side of the cross area in the front-rear direction 8 (orin other words, on a side near the inlet 112M in the horizontaldirection). In other words, the partition wall 135 is extendedcontinuously at the entire area on the front side of the cross area tobe connected to the erected wall 101A and the partition walls 107 and108 without any gap. In other words, the partition wall 135M divides theink chamber 111M in the up-down direction 7 in the entire area on thefront side of the cross area. Moreover, the partition wall 135M is alsoextended toward a rear side of the cross area in the front-reardirection 8 (in other words, a side far from the inlet 112 in thehorizontal direction). However, a part of the partition wall 135M on therear side of the cross area is opened. An area of an opening (in anexample in FIG. 12, a width of the opening in the left-right direction9) provided for the partition wall 135M increases toward a side far fromthe inlet 112M. Moreover, a shape of the opening is symmetrical withrespect to a direction of moving away from the inlet 112M along thepartition wall 135M (in other words, rearward in the front-reardirection 8). The shape of the opening in the present embodiment is anisosceles triangular shape with a vertex of the isosceles triangledirected frontward.

<Arrangement of Ink Tank 100>

The ink tank 100 having the abovementioned arrangement, as shown in FIG.2, is arranged below the lower surface of the carriage 23 (in otherwords, the nozzle surface). More elaborately, an inner surface of theupper wall 104 that defines the upper surface of the ink chamber 111 (inother words, a top surface of the ink chamber 111) is positioned belowthe nozzle surface. Even more elaborately, a lower end of each of theinlets 112 is positioned below the nozzle surface. In other words, theliquid level of the ink inside each of the ink chambers 111 in a usablestate is positioned below the nozzle surface. Moreover, the ink tank100, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, is arranged in front of the guiderail 44, the carriage 23, and the nozzles 40 in the front-rear direction8, or in other words, is arranged at a position shifted to the frontside (an example of a first direction). More elaborately, the film 106which defines rear surfaces of the ink chambers 111 is positioned infront of the nozzles 40.

Moreover, the ink tank 100, as shown in FIG. 3, is arranged outside(right side, in the embodiment) the conveying path 65 in the left-rightdirection 9, or in other words, arranged at a position deviated towardright side. More elaborately, an inner surface of the left wall 103which defines a left surface of the ink chamber 111Y is arranged at aright side of the conveying path 65. In other words, all the inkchambers 111 are arranged at the right side of the conveying path 65.

Moreover, a part of the ink tank 100 is arranged at an inner side ofboth ends of a movement area in which the carriage 23 moves in theleft-right direction 9. More elaborately, at least a part of the inkoutflow channels 114 or the ink deriving channels 117 is positioned at afurther right side of the nozzles 40 of the carriage 23 which ispositioned at rightmost side (shown by alternate long and short dashlines in FIG. 3). In other words, the inks that flow out from the inkchambers 111 pass through the right side of the nozzles 40, and aresupplied to the recording head 39. Moreover, the ink tank 100 isarranged in front of the carriage 23 in the front-rear direction 8.

[Action and Effect of Present Embodiment]

According to the present embodiment, since the ink tank 100 is arrangedoutside the conveying path 65 in the left-right direction 9, and a partof the ink tank 100 is arranged inside the both ends of the movementarea of the carriage 23 in the left-right direction 9, it is possible tomake an outer shape of the casing 14 in the left-right direction 9 smallto realize small-sizing of the apparatus.

Moreover, since the ink tank 100 is arranged in front of the carriage 23in the front-rear direction 8, the total length of the casing 14 in theleft-right direction 9 is shorter than a length in which the dimensionof the ink tank 100 is further added to the movement area of thecarriage 23. Therefore, it is possible to make the outer shape of thecasing 14 in the left-right direction 9 small to realize thesmall-sizing of the apparatus.

Furthermore, since each of the inlets 112 of the ink tank 100 isdirected toward outside of the casing 14 and inclined upward, it ispossible to allow a liquid to flow inclined downward from the outside ofthe side wall of the casing 14 to each of the inlets 112. Accordingly,an access to the ink tank 100 at the time of replenishing the liquid iseasy.

Since the opening 22 of the casing 14 is formed in the front wall 14A onthe front side in the front-rear direction 8, it is possible to make anaccess to the ink tank 100 from the front side of the casing 14.

Moreover, since the casing 14 is provided with the cover 70 which opensand closes the opening 22, when it is not necessary to make an access tothe ink tank 100, it is possible to prevent dust etc. from entering intothe interior of the casing 14 by closing the opening 22.

The cover 70 is pivotable around the pivot axis 70A extended along theleftward-rearward direction 9, the pivot axis 70A is provided at aposition nearer to the lower end 72 of the cover 70 than to the upperend 71 of the cover 70 in a state that the cover 70 closes the opening22. Accordingly, it is easy to hold the cover 70 at a position at whichthe cover 70 opens the opening 22.

Moreover, since the operation panel 17 is arranged on the front wall 14Aof the casing 14 at a position above the ink tank 100 in the up-downdirection 7, it is possible to make a dimension of the casing 14 in theup-down direction 7 short to realize a thin apparatus.

Furthermore, since the feeding tray 20 can be drawn out frontward fromthe casing 14, the user is capable of making an access to the feedingtray 20 from the front side of the apparatus.

MODIFIED EXAMPLE

In the present embodiment, the opening 22 is formed on the right side ofthe front wall 14A of the casing 14, and the ink tank 100 is arranged ata rear side of the opening 22. However, the opening 22 may be formed onthe left side of the front wall 14A, and the ink tank 100 may bearranged at a rear side of the opening 22. Moreover, the opening 22 maybe formed on a right side wall or a left side wall instead of the frontwall 14A of the casing 14, in order to make it possible to access theinlets 112 of the ink tank 100 from the right side or the left side ofthe casing 14.

Moreover, in the embodiment, the recording section 24 was positionedabove the overall conveying path 65 from the feeding tray 20 up to thedischarge tray 21 in the up-down direction 7. However, positioning ofthe recording section 24 is not restricted to such positioning. In otherwords, the recording section 24 may be positioned above a part of theconveying path 65 facing the recording section 24 in the up-downdirection 7. For instance, the feeding tray 20 may be arranged above therecording section 24 in the up-down direction 7, and the conveying path65 may be extended to descend from the feeding tray 20 toward a spacebetween the recording section 24 and the platen 42.

Furthermore, in the embodiment, the ink has been described as an exampleof a liquid. However, the present teaching is not restricted to this. Inother words, instead of ink, a pretreatment liquid which is to be jettedonto a recording paper before jetting an ink at the time of printing,or, water which is to be sprayed in the vicinity of the nozzles 40 ofthe recording head 39 for preventing drying of the nozzles 40 of therecording head 39 may be used as the liquid.

What is claimed is:
 1. A liquid jetting apparatus comprising: a casing;a tank formed with a liquid storage chamber configured to store liquid,an inlet configured to allow the liquid to be poured into the liquidstorage chamber, and a liquid outflow channel configured to allow theliquid to flow out from the liquid storage chamber; a conveyingmechanism configured to convey a recording medium along a conveying pathextending in a front-rear direction; a carriage configured to move in aleft-right direction, at a position above the conveying path in anup-down direction and facing the conveying path; and a head mounted onthe carriage and having a nozzle configured to jet the liquid flowed outfrom the liquid storage chamber through the liquid outflow channel ontothe recording medium conveyed by the conveying mechanism, wherein thetank, the conveying path, and the carriage are arranged inside thecasing, the tank is arranged outside the conveying path in theleft-right direction, and at least a part of the tank is arranged insideboth ends of a movement area of the carriage in the left-rightdirection.
 2. The liquid jetting apparatus according to claim 1, whereinthe tank is arranged in front of the carriage in the front-reardirection.
 3. The liquid jetting apparatus according to claim 1, whereinthe casing has a side wall formed with an opening configured to allowthe inlet of the tank to be accessible, and the inlet is configured toface outward and obliquely upward from the casing.
 4. The liquid jettingapparatus according to claim 3, wherein the opening of the casing isformed in the side wall provided at front side of the casing in thefront-rear direction.
 5. The liquid jetting apparatus according to claim4, wherein the tank is formed with a plurality of the liquid storagechambers and a plurality of inlets configured to allow the liquid to bepoured into the plurality of liquid storage chambers respectively, andthe plurality of inlets is arranged to align along the left-rightdirection.
 6. The liquid jetting apparatus according to claim 3, whereinthe casing is provided with a cover configured to open and close theopening.
 7. The liquid jetting apparatus according to claim 6, whereinthe cover is configure to pivot around pivot axis extending along theleft-right direction, and in a state that the cover closes the opening,the pivot axis is positioned at a position nearer to a lower end of thecover than an upper end of the cover.
 8. The liquid jetting apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein an operation panel having at least one ofan input section configured to accept an input from outside and adisplay section configured to display an image is arranged, on a sidewall provided at front side of the casing, at a position above the tankin the up-down direction.
 9. The liquid jetting apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein a feeding cassette configured to support the recordingmedium is arranged at a position overlapping with the conveying pathwhen viewed from the up-down direction, and the feeding cassette isconfigured to be drawn frontward of the casing.
 10. The liquid jettingapparatus according to claim 9, wherein the casing has an internal spaceprovided above the feeding cassette and configured to allow therecording medium to be discharged.